Caracas, Venezuela – A Freedom Road Socialist Organization labor delegation toured the Canaima laptops and tablets factory in Caracas, Venezuela on March 12. The Canaima plant is located within walking distance of the bridge where U.S. puppet Juan Guaido launched a failed coup d’état April 30, 2019. Upon arrival, leading representatives of the Canaima assembly plant greeted the American Teamsters with genuine smiles and warm handshakes.
Mass pressure and a mayor’s own greed stall a planned power grab
Chicago, IL – In true Chicago fashion, Mayor Lori Lightfoot had expected to easily ramrod through a police reform bill this week that would have affirmed her grip on power. If passed, the “Community Commission for Public Safety and Accountability” ordinance would have left the entire police accountability system in her control, rendering it at the discretion of the executive branch whether to hold itself accountable for abuses of power committed by its police department, rather than giving communities terrorized by police tyranny the power to defend their rights.
Caracas, Venezuela – The Freedom Road Socialist Organization (FRSO) labor delegation met today with Tibisay Lucena, president of the CNE (the National Electoral Council) to discuss the upcoming elections. Lucena spoke about this election as very important in the face of U.S aggression and the economic war.
Jacksonville, FL – Over 75 people gathered together to celebrate International Women's Day on March 8 in Jacksonville. The program was held in the union hall of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW).
Tallahassee, FL – In honor of International Women’s Day, Tallahassee residents attended a panel discussion on the origins and impacts of the socialist holiday.
Los Angeles, CA – The Boyle Heights group Centro Community Service Organization (Centro CSO) will host Día Internacional de la Mujer, International Women’s Day, Saturday, March 7 from 2 to 4 p.m. at the Benjamin Franklin Library. CSO aims to honor and represent local women who are working for LGBT rights, fighting for socialism, defending public education, resisting police terror and brutality, and ending deportations.
St. Paul, MN – The Anti-War Committee is joining with the Climate Justice Committee to unwelcome Vice President Mike Pence when he comes to Saint Paul, 5 p.m., March 5, at the InterContinental Saint Paul Riverfront, 11 E Kellogg Boulevard.
Denver, CO – Denver Students for a Democratic Society hosted local Denver activist Shareef Aleem for an event about radical Black history in the U.S., Feb. 25, as a part of Black History Month. At the event, Aleem discussed the history of radical Black activism, as well as how Black art and culture has been seized and stolen for generations. Aleem, an activist for over 20 years, has been involved in numerous groups, particularly in the peace movement and in the movement for police accountability.
Los Angeles, CA – For nearly three years, activists have been trying to get Los Angeles District Attorney Jackie Lacey to open her doors to them. This morning, March 2, the front door to Lacey’s house was indeed opened, but with a gun pointed at the activists.
St. Louis Park, MN – Amy Klobuchar supporters couldn’t fill the gymnasium, March 1, at Saint Louis Park High School, even with the help of some 250 protesters demanding freedom for Myon Burrell, an innocent Black teen she sent to prison for life when she was the county district attorney. Myon Burrell’s family, the Racial Justice Network, Minneapolis NAACP, Black Lives Matter Twin Cities, Twin Cities Coalition for Justice for Jamar, Communities United Against Police Brutality, and Black Lives Matter Minnesota called for community members to mobilize to protest at the Klobuchar rally, two days before the primary vote. For more than a month, they’ve been calling on Klobuchar to drop out of the race. Hours after the protest, she announced she’s doing just that.
Tampa, FL – On February 25, Tampa Bay Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) held a Black Students Matter rally on campus to bring attention to the racist admissions practices that the administration at the University of South Florida (USF) engages in.
Tampa, FL – Tampa Bay Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) held a rally at the University of South Florida calling for justice and all victims of police brutality, highlighting Jamee Johnson, a Black man who was murdered by officers in Jacksonville. At the February 19 protest, about 15 students promoted the need for community control of the police through police accountability councils. They also demonstrated for their ongoing campaign to increase Black enrollment at USF.
Minneapolis, MN – When Minnesota Governor Tim Walz appeared at the University of Minnesota to reflect on his first year of governing, he was confronted by angry community members demanding that he call for the prosecutions of killer cops across the state. Family members of police murder victims were joined by Twin Cities Coalition for Justice 4 Jamar, UMN Students for a Democratic Society, SMASH students from Minneapolis South High School, and others.
San José, CA – On February 16, the San Jose Day of Remembrance held its 40th annual event with the second-highest attendance ever – more than 550 people. The event started in 1981 as part of the nationwide movement of Japanese Americans demanded redress (an official apology) and reparations (monetary compensation) for their incarceration during World War II.
St. Paul, MN – On February 19, the House Subcommittee on Local Government voted to pass House File 3060. HF 3060 is a bill that would end contracts that local jails in Minnesota have with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to detain people facing civil immigration charges. Currently several county jails in Minnesota have contracts with ICE to hold hundreds of immigrants facing deportation.
Chicago, IL – The courtroom was packed February 14. This was my fourth Gerald Reed court hearing. Usually, there is a crowd of folks who show up to support Gerald and his mother, Armanda Shackleford, who has been fighting for her son since he was arrested, tortured and framed in 1990. Shackleford sits in the front row, wearing her Free Gerald Reed t-shirt. Together we sit for an hour, two hours, three, and hear powerful men debate the innocence of a man whose sentence was vacated a year ago.
Fight Back! News Service is circulating the following statement from the Chicago Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression, the Chicago Torture Justice Center, and Mamas Activating Movements for Abolition and Solidarity.
![Protesters cause cancellation of Amy Klobuchar event, demanding "Free Myon Burre](https://i.snap.as/FJeFYEF5.jpg "Protesters cause cancellation of Amy Klobuchar event, demanding \\"Free Myon Burre Protesters cause cancellation of Amy Klobuchar event, demanding \\"Free Myon Burrell.\\" \(Fight Back! News/Staff\)")
